EDEN PRAIRIE, MINNESOTA – Brandon Sawalich, President and CEO of Starkey, has been named Best MedTech Company CEO by the 2025 MedTech Breakthrough Awards. The annual awards program recognizes excellence and innovation across the global health and medical technology industry.
Sawalich has served as Starkey’s President and CEO since 2017, leading the company through a period of strategic expansion and technology development.
“Innovation isn’t a moment—it’s a mindset. At Starkey we lead with purpose, we challenge the status quo, and we never stop asking how we can make life better for the people who rely on our technology to connect to the world around them.”
–Brandon Sawalich
In recent years, Starkey has introduced features such as fall detection, in-ear language translation, and health tracking into its hearing aid technology. The company launched the world’s first AI-powered hearing aid with integrated sensors in 2018, which marked a shift toward positioning hearing aids as multifunctional health devices.
Sawalich has emphasized a culture of ongoing innovation and technology integration at Starkey. The company continues to focus on developing tools intended to support both hearing health and overall well-being. “With more than 1.5 billion people globally affected by hearing loss—and projections reaching 2.5 billion by 2050—Sawalich continues to champion accessibility, awareness, and technological advancement to meet growing global needs.”
Selected from more than 4,500 nominations, the award highlights Sawalich’s role in the medtech industry and his contributions to hearing healthcare leadership.
About Starkey
Starkey is a privately held, global hearing technology company headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Founded by Bill Austin in 1967, Starkey is known for its innovative design, development and distribution of comprehensive digital hearing systems. Led today by President and CEO Brandon Sawalich, Starkey is the only American-owned provider of hearing technologies. The company has more than 5,000 employees, operates 29 facilities and does business in more than 100 markets worldwide. Learn more at starkey.com.
Source: Starkey
